This sonnet of John Masefield is very much a summer poem… but outside the sky is a brilliant blue, the sun is shining, the lichen on the apple tree is glowing like gold… and I can see the lichen because there are no leaves – we are still in winter! We are drawing towards the end, and spring is on its way, but winter it is with the temperature about 4° but feeling less in the bitter wind.
So here is a reminder of Summer’s royal progress heading unfaltering towards us, the spotted cowslips and the hawthorn blossoms… I’m not going to think about those blossoms reddening to decay or unresisting strife, I’m going to try to remember the intoxicating cocktail of the perfume of cowslips and hawthorn!
Is there a great green commonwealth of Thought
Which ranks the yearly pageant, and decides
How Summer’s royal progress shall be wrought,
Does spotted cowslip with the grass agree
To hold her pride before the rattle burst?
And in the hedge what quick agreement goes,
When hawthorn blossoms redden to decay,
That Summer’s pride shall come, the Summer’s rose,
Before the flower be on the bramble spray?
Or is it, as with us, unresting strife,
And each consent a lucky gasp for life?
Lois Elsden 
It’s -24 C outside today but bright and sunny. Have to snoblow the driveway to be able to go to the YMCA. This is the week our winter carnival begins and there all kinds of activities for old and young alike both indoors and outside. You have to embrace the winter here or go crazy. I wish I could still ski but I still enjoy a nice sunny winters day. I’ll bet we Canadians embrace spring more than most and my favorite pastime is spotting the first robin in my apple tree.
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Gosh -24…. that sounds absolutely perishing!! You’re right about having to embrace the winter – I have two cousins who moved to Canada, one lived there for over ten years, another for three, but both returned to the UK. I’m such a wimp these days… and busy with writing all the time of course 😉 !
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When I was young I used to my Finlanders friends cottage in the winter to cross country ski. When we got off the trail we ran to the sauna which was already hot and after about half an hour would go outside naked and roll in the snow. Perfect cure for a hangover. I don’t remember if I was tougher back then or just stupid. Probably have a heart attack today but would die happy.Great memories!
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When we lived in Cambridge there was always a swim in the river on Christmas morning – we’d all jump in, swim around, jump out and have hot mince pies… the winters were much colder then – I don’t remember breaking ice to do it, but i remember it being snowy!
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